


FIVE MINUTES TO MIDNIGHT

by killerrqueer



Series: riverdale [3]
Category: Riverdale (TV 2017), Star Wars - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Star Wars Setting, Angst, Cheryl Blossom Needs a Hug, F/F, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Star Wars - Freeform, Star Wars AU, cheroni, cheronica, cherosie, choni, choni star wars, fluff with an angsty ending, its a good mix of fluff and angst, jedi!cheryl, lopaz, padawan!toni, riverdale star wars au, toni is a good friend
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-08-15
Updated: 2019-03-16
Packaged: 2019-06-28 00:04:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 8
Words: 16,997
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15696114
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/killerrqueer/pseuds/killerrqueer
Summary: toni wanted to be a pilot, but the universe (and cheryl) had other plans.or, the one where cheryl and toni are cute and gay... but in SPACE!(star wars!choni au. takes place between star wars episodes iii and iv.)





	1. ONE: AMBUSH

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> toni's run-of-the-mill life is suddenly, brutally interrupted.

TONI PUSHED the throttle of her battered speeder halfway forward and, with a grunt like an aging bantha, it eased off the platform and sped forward into the traffic. She had just gotten off from a long day at the shipping factory, and she was heading to her normal after-work place. School? That was out of the question for the young pilot. She barely made enough to eat, even working a 12-hour shift.

Toni’s planet was a busy one, teeming with factories and industrial skyscrapers and populated with smugglers, bounty hunters, poachers, and thieves. Its main export were starships, and it showed. The sky was busy at all times. Only a few chose to use the landspeeders anymore. Toni was one of those few. It wasn’t like she could afford anything better. She considered herself stuck here on this planet, even though it was her home.

 _Welcome to Corellia,_ she thought, with no small amount of bitterness. 

Toni pulled her speeder up to the Recruitment Office, which really was nothing more than a shady door in an even shadier alleyway. She adjusted her grubby tunic and used her knuckles to create three short taps.

The door creaked open and a familiar face appeared. Toni grinned. “Hello, Jonash.”

“Good afternoon, Miss Toni. By the Eternal Core, you look even skinnier than usual! Come in.” her friend ushered her across the threshold. 

Jonash Solo was a good friend of hers, and had sworn to feed her whenever she needed it after she pushed his young son Han, then only two, out of the path of a landspeeder.

“How’s Jaina and the little one?” she asked as Jonash pulled an instant meal out of the tiny nutrition cell. Toni was referring to Jonash’s wife, and Han, now about six years old.

“Doing well, very well. I’ve started showing Han how to fly a freighter. He’s gonna be a great pilot someday.” said Jonash, chuckling. “What brings you here, other than free food?”

“You know what I want.” said Toni, sitting on the dingy little desk and crossing her ankles. “Are they coming today?”

“Toni, the scouting teams haven’t come in ages. I’m just the rendezvous point, they don’t clear anything with me first.”

Toni deflated. Jon saw her expression and crossed the room, placing a hand on her shoulder. “If it helps, I’ve heard whispers… some say the Rebellion is coming this way. That they may be ready to recruit more pilots.”

Toni bounced up. “When did you hear about this?”

“A bit ago. They’re just rumors, though, Toni-”

“Ugh, blast it!” Toni kicked her brown boots against the metal paneling of the table (then winced and rubbed her toes because _blaster bolts_ , that hurt). “I want to get off this rock. I just want to be a Resistance pilot! Is that so much to ask?”

“I know, I know,” soothed Jonash. Being her only friend, Jon was well acquainted with her grumblings about life on their planet. He handed Toni the instant meal. She ripped it open and gobbled down the dark, spongy bread and mushy fruit pudding as if it were the last food on Corellia. For Toni, it might as well have been. 

Then, as if whatever big man or woman controlled the Force was watching them and laughing, the monitor behind Toni lit up red. It was a pretty big surprise, to say the least. In fact, the monitor doing anything at all was so rare that the holokeys were covered in dust.

“Oh, drok it,” muttered Jonash from behind her. Toni whirled in surprise, for she had never heard him use such language before. Any language, in fact. If she had said those words he had just used she would probably receive a smart slap upside the head and a stern look from him. 

Jon stepped over to the screen. “The bucketheads are finally here.” He turned his face to the ceiling and yelled, “Took you long enough!” He laughed, but there was no humor in it.

“T-the-” quavered Toni. Her heart did a flip-flop in her chest.

“Stormtroopers.” the young man turned to her, hazel eyes shining with cold fear. They were the same eyes as his son’s. “I’m so sorry.”

“Sorry for what?” she asked, although she already knew the answer.

“Toni, I think we’re going to die.”

Toni froze for a split second. She’d had thoughts about death many times, but after she met Jon and his family, so willing to feed her, starvation was a distant memory. She was scared of getting jumped, but everytime she did, weird things would happen; a sign would fall off the wall and knock her attackers out cold, or their blasters would explode. It started happening so often that muggers actually avoided jumping her. There was sickness, but she hadn’t been sick in years. When she realistically thought about it, death hadn’t actually bothered her in a very long time. Now it suddenly seemed very, very real.

Toni jumped off the desk, sending up a cloud of dust, and pulled out her blaster. She clutched it to her chest. Of course she was scared, scared out of her mind if she was being honest with herself, but she sure wasn’t going down without a fight.

“How long until they get here?” she said, pacing across the small room like a caged animal. Jonash rifled through his desk and pulled out a blaster pistol. The end was snub and shorter than Toni’s, but it could still pack a punch.

Jon checked the screen. “30 seconds, give or take.”

No chance of running that would end with the two of them alive, then. “Can we barricade the door?”

Jon gestured around the dingy room, and the lack of furniture was suddenly glaringly evident. The only thing was the desk (which was nailed down) and the chair (which was too short to reach the handle). “With what?”

They looked at each other for a second, then Jonash wrapped his arms around Toni in a fierce hug. “If something happens to me, tell Jaina and Han that I love them, ‘kay? And I love you, too.”

A lump rose in Toni’s throat. It had been unbelievably long since she had had those words spoken to her. She wanted to say them back, but any words she would have spoken died on her tongue. They weren’t anywhere close to the amount of gratitude she had for her friend. She decided on “Thank you, Jonash. Of course I’ll tell them.”

There was a loud banging at the door, and it burst open. Jonash stood in front of Toni protectively, blaster cocked and ready. Several stormtroopers flooded through the door. Toni froze in place, unsure of what to do, but Jon grabbed her and shoved her through the stormtroopers, shouting “RUN!”

Toni stumbled out of the building and took to her heels, hot tears streaming down her cheeks as she heard a loud explosion from behind her, and the building went up in flames. She screamed at the top of her lungs, but it was drowned out by blaster-fire and frag grenades. Wherever she looked, the streets were swarmed with white helmets. She saw things, horrible things, things she would never be able to wipe from her memory. She heard, as if from a great distance, somebody screaming at the top of their lungs, and she had a vague impression that it was her. This wasn’t any inspection, this was a full-fledged invasion.

Toni darted through side alleyways, avoiding the crowds of crying children and parents being herded by the troopers. She wanted to hide in a cellar and cry for a week. Her best friend was dead, and his wife and child would probably die soon, too. Not to mention she was probably doomed. But she had to find Jaina and Han.

As if by magic, on the next street she turned onto she could hear Han’s cries. She sprinted towards them, but stopped cold in her tracks when she saw what was happening. 

Jaina was in a trooper’s face, yelling at him to get away from her son at the top of her lungs. Before Toni could even cry out, there was a loud shot and the young woman slumped to the ground. The stormtrooper disgustedly kicked her away, like everything that Jaina had ever meant to Toni was worth no more than a piece of garbage. Han’s cries reached fever pitch, and he sat down hard in the middle of the street. Then, the little boy spotted her. “Toni!” he shrieked. “Help!”

She darted out of her hiding place and scooped Han up. She was done with being a coward. She ran, shoving her blaster into its holster and hoisting Han up onto her hip.

Blaster bolts shot by her, one grazing her leg, the other hitting her left shoulder. It sent flashes of pain down her spine, so hot they were almost cold, and she groaned loudly, stumbling slightly. Armored feet pounded the pavement behind her, rapidly gaining. She was done for. Han pressed his face into her shoulder and sobbed, his small, boyishly chubby arms tightening around her neck.

Toni’s breath rattled in her chest, and another bolt hit her thigh. She stumbled, crying out in pain. _Sixteen years old, killed by the Empire before I could even fight,_ she thought bitterly. She hunched over the little boy, protecting him as best as she could. She felt the blows of the trooper’s nightstick on her back, and the others laughing cruelly, and Han shivering underneath her. She was turned over and the smacks began to land on her face and neck, and all Toni could do was scrunch her eyes tightly shut. The wounds on her arm and leg smarted sharply, but Toni suspected that the pain was dulled by the adrenaline coursing through her veins.

Suddenly, the ground rumbled, and the hits stopped coming. A panic ensued, and she heard the troopers run away. Toni peered cautiously up, and just as she did, a squadron of planes soared overhead, shooting down clumps of stormtroopers. A great cheer went up from the citizens. The Rebels had arrived.

Toni let the little boy go. “Han,” she said. He looked up at her with solemn eyes, teartracks cutting through the dust and grime on his cheeks. “Go to the orphanage by the school. Tell them everything that happened.”

“No, TT, I wanna help you!” said Han plaintively.

“You can’t, sweetie. You gotta go,” Toni told him, grasping his hand and squeezing it gently.

Han nodded and ran away, sending one last look over his shoulder before disappearing. _That kid’s going places,_ she thought. Her mind clouded red with pain. A nap sounded great. Maybe if she slept for a bit, her headache would go away… she dragged herself into a nearby alley, laid back down on the hard ground, and closed her eyes.


	2. TWO: DISTURBANCE

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> cheryl senses something out of the ordinary.

CHERYL WALKED serenely down the hallway of the Rebel base. Wherever she went, conversations quieted, and stares that used to be distrustful were now reverent and curious. Then again, if everyone could see her inner turmoil, their gazes might turn suspicious again.

She had a vision, the night previous, of screaming and terror on the industrial planet of Corellia. She wasn’t sure when it was going to happen, but she sensed that it would happen soon. Her visions were not uncommon, especially with the Empire’s reign, but this dream was different. It was as if someone she was attached to, someone she loved, was in the middle of it all.

She fingered the hilt of her lightsaber uneasily at the thought. As a Jedi, she didn’t have attachments. It was against the code, and could lead a warrior to the Dark Side.

Still, the dream had plagued her mind all day. It was getting annoying. Cheryl walked up to an officer, who immediately stood to attention. “Sir,” she addressed him.

“General Blossom,” he responded.

“Prepare a squadron to head to Corellia. I sense that there is a battle there. I will go with them.” Cheryl told the officer grimly. It wasn’t a question. She was in charge, and he would obey.

She walked back towards the hangar, but, this time she was faster, more purposeful. As she moved, there was an announcement for all pilots to suit up and fly out to Corellia, effective immediately. She felt the ripple of confusion spread throughout the ranks. Corellia, despite being the galaxy’s main exporter of starships and pilots, wasn’t of any interest to the Empire. They already controlled it, so there would be no reason to invade. At least, not that Rebellion knew of. However, they wouldn’t disobey direct orders. The fleet soon flew out, and Cheryl followed in her own personal spacecraft.

The collection of ships zoomed over Corellia, and her Rebels were shooting down stormtroopers left and right. Cheryl easily directed the ground and air squadrons over her helmet microphone (her form of address in the air was Red Leader), feeling out where the biggest clumps of troops were, but her heart and mind weren’t in it. It sort of felt like the Force was tugging at the sleeve of her tunic, guiding her. She couldn’t tell what it wanted of her, but as a Jedi, her obligation was to follow the Force, so it was what she would do.

Her ship touched down at a small landing dock out of the way of the troops. She stepped out of the small X-Wing and drew her robes around her, striding liquidly through the shadows of the skyscrapers. 

Cheryl walked the alleyway that her feeling told her to go down, and her keen ear picked up a faint moaning. She followed the sound closely and found a teenaged girl with dark hair shot through with streaks of pink, perhaps 15 or 16, sprawled on the ground. From the dark skid marks on her tunic and leather jacket, she appeared to have been injured and then dragged herself into this narrow alley for safety. Smart girl. There were coin-sized blaster holes in her upper thigh and shoulder and a graze mark on her calf, all charred a nasty, sizzling black.

Cheryl stooped down on one knee. “Okay, my friend,” she whispered to the girl on the ground. She was not positive that she could hear her, but it was always polite to give warning. “I’m sorry, but I have to move you.” She put her arms under her and gently rolled her over. She gasped as a tingle of energy rocketed up her arm. She knew then, without a doubt, that this was who the Force had sent her to find. A quiet groan emanated from the girl, and her eyelids fluttered open slightly to reveal a small flash of hazel iris. Angry purple bruises peeked out of the collar of her tunic and marred her tan face. Cheryl felt a flash of anger. No doubt Stormtroopers did this to her. Where was their right? It was all just senseless cruelty.

 _And why are you so concerned with this peasant girl?_ Cheryl asked herself. Well, it had everything to do with the fact that the Force sent her here, and nothing to do with the fact that the girl was incredibly resilient, stunningly beautiful, and that something about her energy made Cheryl like her. Of course.

Cheryl sensed that the Force ran within the girl’s veins, and also that she would die if someone didn’t tend to her wounds soon.

Cheryl scooped the girl into her arms and ran with her back to the Rebel freighter ship carrying the troops, avoiding any areas clogged with soldiers fighting. She purposefully handed the girl up into the med-bay droid’s arms.

“Take special care of her. She has been badly injured. Send her to me when she is recovered enough.” Cheryl told the mechanical nurse, who nodded and placed her on a cot. She had a feeling that the girl’s fate and hers would be intertwined in the future. All the girl needed was rest once she was bandaged up, and they would be seeing each other again very soon.

But after all that, Cheryl could have sworn that she saw the girl’s bright eyes follow her as she walked away.


	3. THREE: APPRENTICE

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> toni wakes up in a brand new place. toni and cheryl form a bond. we meet the serpents and some others.

THE FIRST thing Toni saw when she woke up was the alarmingly close-up face of a protocol droid.

“Aah!” she shrieked in fright, sitting straight up. It was a certified miracle that she didn’t pass out again as all the blood rushed right to her head. The protie leaped aside, narrowly missing Toni’s forehead flying at them.

“Miss!” the droid cried, pressing her shoulder back down to the pillow. “You have been asleep for two days. Stand up slowly.”

The memories of the attack on Corellia came flooding back to Toni in force, and tears filled her eyes. She would never, ever forget what she had seen that day. The things she had witnessed, and even let happen… she shuddered, but blinked the tears and thoughts away and laid back down, trying to get her bearings. The room she was in was too spotlessly white to be Corellian, where a layer of oily grime settled on anything the light touched and some things that it didn’t. Where was she? Her question was answered when the droid turned back around. A picture, shaped like a graceful starbird, was stamped on their chest. She was in a Rebel med-bay. Toni nearly cried out at the notion. In wonder or in joy? She didn’t know.

She sat up again, slower this time, and swung her legs over the side of the bed. She tested her weight, surprised to find she could walk, and she touched her thigh, only feeling a small welt where there used to be a gruesome burn. The same went for her shoulder.

Toni wondered how she had gotten to a Rebel base. She had a vague recollection of dragging herself into an alley, and a beautiful, stony-faced, red-haired girl. The same girl had haunted her dreams for an indeterminate amount of time, dragging her out of fictional dangers created by her mind and leading her on fuzzy chases from shadowy demons.

“Miss?” the droid asked. Toni turned toward it questioningly. It gestured at the door. “The general would like to see you.” 

Toni was still tired, but this didn’t seem like the type of order to disobey, even to her, and her personal motto was that rules were meant to be broken. She followed the droid, tugging awkwardly at her hospital patient pajamas. They were capri pants and a medium-cut sleeveless shirt, both cottony soft and spotless white, and they offered no measure of protection. Toni missed her leather jacket. She wished she at least had a good blaster by her side.

They entered a humongous command central, swarming with people in vests, bombers, and shirts emblazoned with the starbird of the Rebellion. At the center of it all was a simple chair, suited to be a pilot’s seat, and the turmoil of strategy roiled around it, seeming to center on the figure seated there.

Toni walked forward to get a better view. She immediately identified her as the girl from the dreamscape, and her features clicked into place in Toni’s memory as if it were drawing them in. She had a pale, angular face, coldly beautiful but with warm, twinkling brown eyes. She was dressed in a simple tan tunic, brown pants and leather boots, and a cloak that was hooded over her head, with a shock of wavy red hair curling out, and a braid of the same color crisscrossing down the side of her head and across her breast. Toni could just barely see the glint of metal on the general’s ears in the darkness of the hood. Her legs were crossed, her fingers steepled, and her posture was ramrod straight. And hot _damn_ , she was gorgeous.

Toni approached her warily- should she bow or what? She had never met a Rebellion general before- but the question was answered when the girl held out a hand for a handshake. Toni wiped her sweaty palms on her pants and shook it awkwardly, the general’s gaze somehow putting her at ease and making her nervous at the same time.

“Greetings, young Antoinette,” the redhead said. How did this girl know her name? Her real name, at that. No one knew her real name. “I am the General, but you may call me Cheryl or Master Cheryl.” The guards shifted, and Toni noted with pleasure that probably not many people got to call the General by her first name.

“It’s Toni, actually,” Toni said before she could stop herself. “Why’re you calling me young? We’re, like, the same age.” The guards gasped in evident horror.

Cheryl’s face was unreadable for a moment, and Toni silently cursed her giant mouth, but then her lips curved upward in an impressed smile and she regarded Toni in a new light. “Well. That was… refreshing,” she said. “Not many people can do that and remain in my presence. However, I have decided to like you, but as an exchange, please never talk back to me again.” She paused. “Toni.”

Toni huffed out an awkward laugh. “Sure.”

“Good.” She reclined on her throne. “And yes, I may only be a year older than you, but I am your Master and you should act like it.”

 _Wanky_ , thought Toni.

“And you would do well to control your thoughts around me, too.” Toni choked in surprise, and Cheryl smiled again. “Just kidding. Even most Jedi can’t read minds. But I suppose I was thinking the same thing as you, judging by your expression.”

Toni’s eyebrows shot up. This girl was an enigma. A Jedi Master with as dirty of a mind as a Corellian teenager? Unheard of. But Toni found herself liking Master Cheryl. She seemed… cool. And she had a sense of humor. Not to mention the fact that she was really, really pretty. It was a nice change from the few Jedi she had met before, all three being boring, smelly, bearded men that belonged a museum for the oldest people alive and talked like they were reciting ancient texts.

“So, I am guessing that you would like to know the reason I’ve called you here today,” Cheryl started, dismissing the guards with a wave of her hand. Toni nodded. “The truth is, I have no idea. You’re a scrawny, lippy peasant and the only thing dirtier than you yourself is your mouth. You talk in your sleep,” she added, and Toni lowered her eyes, cheeks growing hot. “But the Force brought me to you, so you must be important somehow. What can you do?”

“Huh?”

Cheryl made a broad motion with her hands. “Skills. Talents. What was your trade?”

This was her chance! “I’m a pilot, ma’am, General, Master Cheryl, ma’am,” she babbled. _Blaster bolts, now she thinks you’re an idiot. Nice job, Tiny._

Cheryl seemingly ignored her rambling. “Just Cheryl is fine. Are you any good?”

Toni grinned. “Good? I’m the best pilot on Corellia.”

Cheryl guffawed, and Toni’s face fell. “Oh, don’t look like that, _cheríe_ ,” she soothed. “I’m sure you’re a great pilot. But to say you’re the best pilot on a planet that deals in the training and export of pilots is a little absurd, don’t you think?”

With this, Toni felt extremely embarrassed for the second time that day. “There’s something different about me,” she mumbled. “It’s like I can see everything when I’m flying. I close my eyes and I can sense the obstacles like my eyes were still open.”

Cheryl sat forward. “Now, that is interesting,” she mused. “Does anything… odd ever happen to you? Things that you can’t explain?”

Toni thought about it, then realized: “the muggers,” she said. “When people jump me in alleyways, something strange happens to them that always makes them unable or unwilling to fight.”

“I think I know why the Force guided me to you.” Cheryl’s eyes sparkled with inspiration. “I had my suspicions, but now I know: you’re strong in the Force, and that means you need to be trained.” She stood up from her chair, stretched her legs, and began to pace back and forth. Toni noticed with a start that she was nearly half a foot taller than her. Boy, her superiority complex did not like that. “You’re much too old, of course, but I’m sure I can convince the Jedi Council. They love me over there. Plus, with the amount of aptitude you have just on your own, you must have an incredibly high midichlorian count! They can’t possibly turn you down.”

Toni was nodding along until she finally realized what Cheryl was talking about. “Yeah, okay- wait, what?”

“I’m taking you on as my Padawan learner, of course,” she said excitedly. Padawan? Like, a Jedi apprentice?

“I’m- I’m not a Jedi, though. I can’t, y’know-“ Toni wiggled her fingers in the air. “-move things with my mind.”

“The crazy part is you can! That’s the explanation for what happened with the thieves,” Cheryl said eagerly. “Actually doing it consciously, though- that’s something I’ll have to teach you. Most Jedi can’t even do it after weeks of training. But being able to Force lift subconsciously with no training is a sign that you’re incredibly talented.”

Toni’s brow furrowed. “So, if I became a Jedi, could I still fly as a pilot?” 

Cheryl nodded. “It’d be second to your Jedi training, of course, but I could find you a squadron and you could fly missions with them.”

Toni thought about it for roughly two seconds. “Deal.”

“Great!” Cheryl clapped gleefully. Actually clapped. Toni couldn’t help but grin because it was actually kinda cute. “Walk with me.” Cheryl motioned her to her side. They went through a door and into a wide hallway. “You have already been assigned to a room.” She handed her a passkey on a lanyard with the number 17 on it. “Get some new clothes from there-“ she pointed to a room at the end of the hall. “-and get a good night’s rest. Tomorrow, we’ll holocall the Jedi Council and get approval for me to train you.”

—

Toni waved her passkey over the panel next to the door and it hissed open. She had thankfully been able to change into new clothes, the nicest and the cleanest she had owned in a while: a white wraparound tunic, a thick leather belt with an empty holster, tan capris, a brown hooded cloak identical to Cheryl’s, and a pair of tall brown boots. In a bag she toted over her shoulder was a few street outfits, and her new pride and joy: a trainee’s pilot uniform, complete with a brand new leather jacket stamped with the emblem of the Rebellion.

As she entered, in front of her was a small common room, with two far doors leading off in different directions. There was a movie showing on the holoscreen, but the sound was on mute. She counted seven people altogether relaxing in the room. A group of four guys were surrounding the table in the middle. Three had black hair, although one’s was more spiky, the second’s was fluffy, and the third’s was mostly hidden under a worn grey beanie. The fourth guy’s hair was as red as Cheryl’s. All of them were wearing pilot’s uniforms, except the dark-haired guys’ were stamped with a green snake, and the redhead’s was stamped with a blue bulldog. They were playing what seemed to be a raucous game of Sabacc with a few alterations, and they kept being shushed by a brunette relaxing on the other couch. She was reading an actual paper book, which Toni hadn’t witnessed in a long time, with a blonde girl in mechanic’s overalls fast asleep on her shoulder. Another girl sat next to them, with smooth brown skin and dozens of little braids, plucking out a tune on some sort of stringed instrument.

The boys were too invested in their game to notice Toni, but the brunette looked up with a start. “Oh, hello!” she stage-whispered. 

The blonde’s eyes fluttered open and she peered up sleepily. “Ronnie? Who’s that?”

“A girl with ears,” Toni mumbled.

“Sorry, Betts, did I wake you?”

“Nah.” She waved her hand carelessly. “It’s just the boys.”

“Those nerfherders. I’m going to beat their asses if they don’t shut up.” The brunette ruffled the blonde’s hair fondly and turned back to Toni. “Anyways, you must be our new bunkmate. I’m Veronica Lodge, lieutenant strategy officer, and this sleepyhead right here is my girlfriend, Betty Cooper, the best mechanic on Dantooine Base.”

“You flatter me, V,” murmured Betty, already falling asleep again.

“Anytime.” Veronica smiled, carefully nudging the snoozing blonde from her shoulder to her lap. “Don’t mind her, she was up all last night fixing a problem with the air filtration system, and she hasn’t slept in more than 24 hours. We’re known as Beronica to the locals. And if my girl McCoy is going to be too rude to introduce herself-”

“Nah, just busy. I would if you stopped talking for a second.” Veronica flicked the other girl’s ear playfully. “Ouch, Veronica! Cut it out!” She fended her off and set down her instrument. “Hi. I’m Josie.” Toni gave a small wave.

“And the lovable dorks over there are Fangs and Sweet Pea-” she pointed at the dark-haired pilots- “the one celebrating his victory is Forsythe Jones, although he prefers to be called Jughead, which isn’t much better in my opinion-“ she pointed at the beanie-clad pilot- “and the golden boy with more muscles than the average human is Archie Andrews.” She indicated the redhead. “And you are?”

“Uh, Toni. Toni Topaz. Hello.”

“And what exactly do you do?” Veronica asked, not meanly. She just sounded curious.

“I’m a pilot from Corellia,” she answered automatically, then backtracked. “Also, Master Cheryl’s Padawan now, I guess.”

Veronica’s perfectly shaped eyebrows shot up. “Wow. You’re training to be a Jedi?” Toni nodded. “That’s neat. The General’s a little extreme sometimes, isn’t she?”

She shrugged. “I dunno. I actually like her. I think she’s cool.”

Josie let out a laugh. “Cool? Cheryl Blossom is not ‘cool’.” She made air quotes. “She’s the human embodiment of fire.”

“You wanna marry her, McCoy?” joked Veronica.

“Oh, shut the hell up, Lodge.” Josie picked up her instrument again. “The point is, if you weren’t terrified just looking at her, then there’s something very different about you.” She strummed an ominous chord. “Very, _very_ different.”


	4. FOUR: INTELLIGENCE

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> cheryl receives some startling news.

CHERYL WAS woken in the early hours of the morning by a page on her personal device. Surprisingly, it was from command central. She wondered what they wanted so early, and why it was specifically her that they wanted. She rolled out of bed, splashed her face with water, and pulled her robe over her pajamas. The corridors got especially cold at night. 

She padded into command central, which was a storm of chaos. Officials in a mixture of street clothes, uniform, and pajamas ran around, flipping switches, scribbling things down, and calling across the room frantically. 

Cheryl walked up to Major McCoy and Strategy Officer Lodge, and they all saluted to each other. “Hello, Hermione. Major, what in all hell is going on here?”

“We’re getting a holomessage from Private Muggs, on one of the bigger Empire ships. She said she needed to talk to you specifically.” 

“Ethel?” Cheryl bit her lip, confused. “What could she want from me?”

Hermione gestured toward the holoscreen. “Better if she just tells you.”

Cheryl jogged over and leaned on the desk, palms flat. Ethel’s frantic face filled the screen, like she was hiding. “Hello, Ethel. Long time, no see. What do you need?”

“General! Thank God.” Ethel glanced back, then at the camera again. “I had to fight my way here, so I need to make this quick because backup is coming. Heather’s here, on this ship.”

“H-Hea-” sputtered Cheryl.

“Yes, your girlfriend Heather. She’s here, but- AAAAAAH!” Ethel screamed and the picture disintegrated into static.

“Ethel!” Cheryl pounded on the side of the holoscreen, but Major McCoy gently pulled her away. 

“General. She’s gone.”

“Major, when can we get Heather?” Cheryl grabbed the Major’s shoulders. “She’s alive and I want to see her.” She looked at the holoscreen wistfully. “I _need_ her.”


	5. FIVE: ASSESSMENT

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> toni awaits approval by the jedi council and chooses a crystal for her lightsaber.

TONI WOKE to a loud pounding on the dorm door. She sat up, head buzzing from the noise, and ran her hands through her pink-streaked hair. Betty was still fast asleep- that job yesterday must have taken a lot out of her. Josie was already padding towards the door, and Veronica’s upside-down, grinning face appeared from the bunk above. “Nice bedhead, Topaz.”

“Shut it,” Toni yawned, attempting to untangle herself from her sheets, falling, and landing on the floor. Veronica jumped down the ladder and perched herself on Betty’s bed. The blonde still didn’t stir. The door clicked open and Toni sat up, rubbing her eyes.

“Oh!” she heard Josie say. “Hello, General.”

“There’s no need for that, Josie. Just Cheryl is fine.” Cheryl said awkwardly, and Toni scrambled to attention. “Is Toni here?”

“I’m in here, Cheryl,” she called, wincing as her voice cracked. “I was just-”

“You were asleep?” Cheryl poked her head in the door and immediately looked out-of-place in the chaos of the girls’ dorm. “Laziness isn’t becoming of a young Jedi. Get ready and meet me outside in 15 minutes. And-” she waved a hand. “Please put some pants on.” The door slammed, and Toni, realizing she was only wearing a shirt, felt her cheeks grow hot.

Josie turned, triumphant. “Still think she’s ‘cool’?”

Veronica whistled, long and low, and Betty mumbled something in her sleep. “Look at that blush! She’ll probably sleep fully clothed from now on.”

Toni shook her head. “Bite me, Lodge.” She grabbed some clothes and ran all the way to the showers. Not because she wanted to show Cheryl she wasn’t lazy, of course. Not at all.

—

Toweling her hair off from her (extremely freezing cold) shower, Toni grabbed a pair of street trousers, her belt, her boots, her brand new pilots’ jacket, and a tank top. After she got dressed, she took a minute to admire herself in the mirror, pulled her still-wet hair into a messy bun, threw her towel and sleep shirt into the ‘dirty’ chute, and jogged out to the common room. Cheryl was sitting on one of the couches. She rose when she saw Toni and motioned for her to follow her.

“Laziness may not be becoming of you, but that jacket sure is,” Cheryl told her as they walked into the dorm hall. “You look like you were born to wear it.” Toni’s heart swelled at the praise. “I apologize for my behavior earlier.” She rubbed her face tiredly. “I had a bit of a long night.”

“It’s fine. What… happened?” asked Toni cautiously.

“I’ll tell you in due time. For now…” Cheryl directed her into a large room with a holoscreen in the center. “We focus on getting permission for you to train with me.”

Although the room had the air of someplace that should be busy, it was deserted this early in the morning. “And what happens if you don’t?”

Cheryl shrugged. “I’ll still train you. It will just have to be more unorthodox.” She tapped something on the holokeys, looking for all the world like the kickass general everyone saw her as. A screen flashed up, showing the inside of a grandiose room, with a ring of chairs. Each chair held a different person in brown robes: a small, green, scaly person, a tall, bald black man, a white-haired man who looked about three hundred years old, the list went on. In the background, there was a loud explosion, and Toni flinched. _The council room of the Jedi._

“Hello, Master Blossom. News you have for us?” the little green person questioned.

“Master Blossom was my father, Master Yoda. Call me Cheryl,” she joked weakly. Toni snickered at the expressions on the Jedi council’s faces, and then yelped as Cheryl stomped hard on her foot.

The noise brought attention to Toni, who was standing in the background. “And who is she?” asked the older man.

Cheryl inclined her head. “Master Kenobi, this is Toni Topaz. She’s strong in the Force and I wish to train her.” Toni gave a tight smile.

“The rules you must know.” Master Yoda stood up, and Toni realized he was only two feet tall. Toni could relate- maybe his friends called him Tiny, too. “Train her you can only if extreme promise she shows.” Toni quirked a cocky eyebrow at Cheryl, who shook her head in exasperation.

“She- she does,” Cheryl forced out through a gritted smile. Toni opened her mouth to make a comment that she would probably regret, and Cheryl stamped down on her foot for the second time.

“OH, F-”

“SO!” Cheryl yelled, shoving Toni out of the viewfinder. “What do you say?”

The Masters looked concerned at Cheryl’s outburst, but Master Kenobi shook it off and said “If you really want to take on this responsibility, Master Blossom, then we will send you a test for her to take.” _A test?_ “If she passes, she will be fully under your instruction. With the sieges, I think it’s clear we have no time to argue.”

Cheryl bowed slightly. “Thank you, Masters.” The holoscreen shut off, and Toni burst out laughing. Cheryl turned to her and and punched her in the shoulder. “You arrogant, imbecilic, immature son of a-” She muttered, but she was smiling too.

“‘They love me over there!’” Toni mimicked. “They’re too busy for you! Really? A test? I haven’t taken a test since Year frickin’ Three-”

“Stop it!” cried Cheryl, but she let out a hoot of laughter. They locked eyes and gave each other huge smiles, but Cheryl cleared her throat and looked away awkwardly.

A box by the door beeped and the flap swung open. Toni picked up the item inside. It was a little tube with a reading screen attached. 

“A midichlorian test,” said Cheryl. “Of course.”

Toni waved the tube in the air. “So what do I do with it?”

“Careful!” She took the small metal tube from Toni’s outstretched hand and popped it open. “Put your finger in.”

“That’s what she-”

“Please.” Cheryl pinched the bridge of her nose. “ _Please_ shut up.” 

Toni shrugged and placed her finger inside, and Cheryl closed it. “Will it hurt?”

“No,” Cheryl promised. A second later a sharp pain stung Toni’s finger.

“Hey, ouch!”

“I lied.” Cheryl checked the readout, frowned, flicked the device a couple of times, and read it again. “Huh.”

“What is it?” asked Toni. 

“Your midichlorian count is incredibly high. So high, in fact, that it’s off the charts.” Cheryl scratched the back of her neck, eyes wide in awe. “That hasn’t happened since…” she swallowed hard.

“Since who?”

“Darth Vader.”

“Um.” Toni blinked. “Like, the Darth Vader?”

“You know any other Darth Vaders?” Cheryl shot back. It was a joke in context, but her tone was uneasy. Scared, even.

“So that means I can train?” 

“Well, I don’t think they can turn you down with proof like this.” Cheryl pointed at the screen. Toni noticed her hand was shaking slightly. She wondered what was up with that. Like, sure, Toni was afraid of Darth Vader, he’d done some pretty messed-up stuff in his time, but not to her personally. She had no reason to be really afraid of him; he was a shadow in the mist to her. So why did the thought of him make Cheryl literally tremble?

Toni’s train of thought was broken by Cheryl placing the tube back in the transfer box and snapping it shut. “Now we wait.” Sure enough, a moment later a medium-sized cardboard box and slip of paper appeared inside, and on the paper was simply written:

_Congratulations._

“Just ‘congratulations’?” Cheryl said. “You have the highest midichlorian count since the supposed Chosen One. A little bit of confetti would be nice.”

“They really don’t like me, do they? I’ve never been congratulated so passive-aggressively.” Toni picked up the box and shook it curiously. It was heavy and emitted a loud, crinkly rattle like it was full of machine parts or hard candy. Toni prayed to whatever big man or woman running the Force that it was hard candy, but no dice. Inside was a collection of misshapen crystals in various shades of blue, green, and yellow.

“They can’t hate you that much. They sent you a present.” Cheryl dragged a curious finger through the pile. “Look at those! Kyber crystals! Wait.” Her face fell. “Okay, I’m not as excited as I thought I was. These are shit.” She slapped a hand over her mouth. “Oops. Pardon my Huttese.”

Toni reached her hand into the box, raising her eyebrows in surprise when her fingers seemed to gravitate toward a certain crystal. She picked it up and examined it. “They look alright to me. Maybe a little ugly,” she said.

“It’s not their appearance, it’s how they resonate. Their energy.” Cheryl reached over and tapped the crystal Toni was holding, a murky green chip of misshapen stone. “Sense. Feel it out.”

Toni concentrated and, sure enough, she could sense a weak current pulsating through the crystal. She frowned. “These things power lightsabers? Shouldn’t it be stronger?”

“That’s the point. Feel this.” Cheryl pulled her lightsaber out of its sheath. It was black- and gold-ridged, with the mark of Cheryl’s long fingers worn into the metal. It looked to be well-loved but well-cared for, with few dings and scratches. Cheryl popped open a little door on the side, and a red shard rolled out into her palm. It was sleek and polished, almost seeming to glow- a far cry from the lump of gray-green that had ‘chosen’ Toni.

“Red’s kind of your color, isn’t it?” joked Toni. Cheryl rolled her eyes and stretched out her hand to Toni.

Toni touched the crystal and a jolt of energy immediately rocketed up her arm. She yelped, jerking her hand away. “Yep. Different, aren’t they?” Cheryl chuckled, letting the crystal drop from her hand back into the lightsaber’s power compartment.

“I didn’t even have to concentrate.” Toni picked the green stone back up. Now that she knew what she was looking for, she didn’t have to search, but the current was still decidedly weaker.

“They must have sent you the reject pile. The nerve of them!” Cheryl said in disbelief. But then she crossed her arms, seemingly deep in thought. “And we don’t have any other crystals…”

“No.” Toni pointed at her. “No. Absolutely not. Don’t even think about it. I’m not using the crap crystal to make my lightsaber-”

“We’re using the crap crystal to make your lightsaber!” Cheryl said with evident glee. Toni groaned loudly and pulled her face into a pout. “Oh, don’t make that face. You need a lightsaber and it’s too dangerous to go off-world, what with all the Empire traffic in this area. Darth Venamis won’t let up just for you and you know it.” Toni shook her head rapidly. “Toni, that crystal chose you. I saw your hand gravitate toward it.”

“Cheryl,” Toni whined.

“You’re acting like a child,” Cheryl said pointedly. Toni bit her lip and looked down at the crystal cupped in her palm. Cheryl, realizing that she shouldn’t have been so harsh, spoke softer. “Look, we can just try it out. And if you don’t like it or it doesn’t work, you can use one of my extras, okay?” She reached out a gentle hand and placed it on Toni’s shoulder. “I know you’re disappointed, but you won’t be using it much until you’re a Knight, anyways. We can get you a better crystal by then.” 

Toni nodded. “So what does yours look like?” She had met Jedis before, but she had never actually seen an unsheathed lightsaber up close. Cheryl grinned mischievously and flicked the weapon. The blade slid out with a terrifying whoosh-shroom, the fiery glow turning her brown eyes crimson. She twirled it a few times in a fast figure eight, faster than Toni’s eyes could follow. “Holy SHIT!” Toni yelped excitedly. “I want one!”

Cheryl flicked it again and the blade sheathed itself, making a short shoop. She tried to hide her smile, but Toni could tell that she was absolutely loving her excitement. “And no matter what happens, you’ll be getting one. But I have a feeling that, while it may not seen like much, that reject crystal may surprise you.”

Toni shrugged. “Maybe. But it’s still an ugly little bastard.”

Cheryl poked her in the chest. “Don’t judge a book by its cover.”


	6. SIX: INITIATION

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> toni constructs her new lightsaber.

THEY LEFT the command center, and Cheryl led Toni to some sort of workshop. As a fun surprise, the only occupants happened to be Betty and Veronica, in a slightly… compromising position. Toni nearly hollered in shock, but managed to contain herself.

Cheryl let out an exasperated sigh. “Seriously, you two? Again?” Veronica let out a muffled shriek against Betty’s lips and whirled, and Betty herself practically tucked and rolled off the workbench. Several machine parts clattered to the floor with her.

Veronica winced, swiping disheveled hair out of her face, and gave a small wave. “‘Sup, Toni?” Toni managed to pick her jaw up off the floor and gave Veronica her best _WTF, dude?_ face.

Betty popped up off the ground. “Sorry! I’m sorry, General, we didn’t think anyone would be in here-” she rambled.

“Betty, darling, as much as you and your heart eyes may believe, you and dear Veronica are not the only people on Dantooine Base,” Cheryl said, saccharine sweet. “Maybe you would get caught less if you found a place that people don’t regularly walk into?”

“We’re honestly so sorry, General Blossom. It won’t happen again,” Veronica promised.

“Yes, yes.” Cheryl made a shooing motion with her hand. “As long as I don’t have to witness you sucking Betty’s face ever again.” Veronica helped Betty up off the ground and they raced quickly out of the room. Cheryl rubbed her temples, muttering something under her breath.

Once they had left, Toni was able to let out the laugh that was building in her chest. “How many times have you caught them at it?”

Cheryl rolled her eyes. “More times than I am able to logically count.” She motioned to the workbench where Betty had been sitting. “Shall we?”

“I think it’s a little early for that, but if you want to,” joked Toni.

“What? I-” Cheryl’s face pinkened as she realized what Toni was implying. “Oh! No! I meant the lightsa- we were going to-” she flapped her arm, and Toni lost her shit, bending over and wheezing with giggles. “You were joking.”

“Yeah, ‘course I was joking.”

“Good. Heh.” Cheryl scratched the back of her neck. This was the first time Toni had seen her really flustered, and it was adorably hilarious. “Because I wouldn’t have- I wasn’t...”

“It’s fine, Blossom. I want to make this lightsaber, and we can’t do that while you’re bright red and stuttering.”

“Don’t call me Blossom.” Cheryl raked her hands through her hair. “I should punish you harshly for saying something so- so inappropriate to me-”

Toni knew she shouldn’t say it, but, as always, her mouth went faster than her mind. “Ooh.” She wiggled her eyebrows. “You’re gonna _punish_ me? Have I been _bad_?”

“You- Toni- incorrigible!” Cheryl spluttered. Toni howled with laughter, and Cheryl stalked over to the workbench. “Let’s make the damn saber already. I’m contemplating not letting you borrow my old one if your crystal doesn’t work.”

Now, that was a snap back to reality. “No!” yelped Toni. “I want a lightsaber!” She really, really wanted to learn how to fight, even if it wasn’t with her own lightsaber.

“Fine. Shut up and listen,” Cheryl snapped coldly. Toni wondered with surprise where flustered and cute Cheryl had gone. She thought they were having a nice banter. But maybe, just maybe, icy, angry General Blossom was a mask, and maybe Toni had pulled that mask away for a second. She grinned in triumph and walked to stand next to Cheryl, setting her crystal on the table.

“No need to be mean, Master.” Toni gave Cheryl her biggest, goofiest grin. Her cold facade seemed to visibly melt, and there it was again. That fleeting look of outrage for making her feel something. Cheryl actually liked her, no matter what she did, and Toni delighted in that fact. Cheryl huffed and rubbed her temples, muttering some choice words under her breath but seemingly calming down a little bit. She picked up a few pieces and presented them to Toni. “What am I supposed to do with these?” Toni asked.

Cheryl set the parts down in front of her and nudged them into a neat heap. “This is how they taught me in the Temple- they didn’t.” Toni shot her a confused glance. 

“They didn’t teach you how to make a lightsaber? Then how did you do it?”

“Here.” Cheryl took Toni’s wrists in her hands and placed them so they were hovering over the pile of gizmos. She hoped Cheryl didn’t see her cheeks flush a slight pink. She wondered why she always seemed to get warmer when Cheryl touched her. “You have to sense it,” she explained. “If you concentrate, the Force will guide you to design a saber that amplifies and augments your abilities so you get the most out of its power. That’s why it’s beneficial to make and use your own weapon instead of borrowing mine: because it really is like an extension of your body.”

Toni nodded, still unsure but onboard with the idea. “Cool beans.” She waved at the parts. “So, uh, I just… concentrate? And then I can magically build this complicated technological wonder?”

“In essence, yes.” Cheryl shrugged. “Though I may not have put it exactly like that.”

“I don’t believe you, but let’s try it.” Toni had never felt so ridiculous, but she closed her eyes and focused on the components. _Lightsaber… the Force_. a warm feeling flooded into her chest, filling her so suddenly that she gasped, and, to her surprise, a hazy picture began to form in her mind.

It was definitely a lightsaber, but it looked different than Cheryl’s. For starters, it was silver and black, not gold and black, and it was a little bit shorter (which made sense, since Cheryl’s fingers were long and thin and Toni’s weren’t). It was curved, with a soft grip. The emitter was clawed, giving it a cool, sorcerer’s-wand-y, spiky look that Toni absolutely adored. Surprisingly, on the outside was a sort of moon-shaped thing, protecting the grip and glowing the same color as the blade- a bright, wavering green. Toni had never seen anything like it, but it felt so right that her fingers started building practically on their own. She arranged the inner parts and began to work them together, and they fit like she was building from a kit.

Cheryl leaned her head on her hand, watching Toni build with lazy interest. “That was pretty quick.”

“A picture just, like, appeared,” Toni said absentmindedly, focused on bringing the vision to life.

Cheryl observed for a while, but left early on. Toni worked on her saber for hours, days even, but it felt like time had stopped and it was just her and the machines. The only reason she even knew when a more than a day had passed was the gentle touch of her mentor on her shoulder, so not to startle her. Cheryl was wearing an entirely different outfit and had brought her some dinner food and a cup of coffee. Her eyes were heavy and the food was cold, which led Toni to believe it was late at night.

Toni plopped herself down on a bench, suddenly realizing how much her feet hurt, and accepted the sustenance gratefully. “Thank you.” 

“Anything at all.” Cheryl walked over to where Toni had been working for the past day and let a out a low whistle. “This is looking great.”

“Is this normal?” Toni asked through a mouthful of her dinner. “I mean, building for so long.”

“Close your mouth when you’re chewing.” Toni snapped her jaw shut. “And no, not at all, actually. When I built mine, it took me three days without sleeping, eating, or showering. If it weren’t for my mentor, I probably would have died of dehydration because I was so focused. The only thing that is abnormal is how quick you’re working.”

“Nice,” Toni approved, drizzling some gravy on top of the slab of savory meat and shoving it in her mouth, chasing it with a gulp of coffee.

“So you’re almost done?”

“I think so.” Toni set down her plate and gestured at the workbench. “There’s a thing, a weird thing- can’t quite figure it out. Maybe I’m just tired or something. Dunno.”

“What sort of thing?” questioned Cheryl. “Show me. Maybe I can help.”

“Like, a curved crescent that wraps ‘round the grip. It protects my hand, could also be used as a weapon, maybe?” Toni walked over and gestured to where it would be. “Right here. Goes like this.” She started her hand just below the clawed emitter and made an arch to just above the pommel. “Whoosh.”

“I see.” Cheryl rubbed her chin. “Right here. Oh, that’s simple. See this hole?”

“Yeah.” Toni blinked. “I didn’t know what it was for.”

“It’s just another emitter.” Cheryl picked up a little elbow piece, examined it, and screwed it on, and Toni was suddenly hit with an overwhelming feeling of completeness.

“That’s it! The weird Force thing in my head says it’s done!” Toni took it gingerly from Cheryl and pressed the button to open the compartment on the side. She took her ugly crystal from the pocket of her jacket, pressed a kiss to its glassy surface for luck, and rolled it in. The system immediately picked it up and magneted it into place, causing the weapon to vibrate slightly. Toni squealed in excitement and Cheryl gave an approving round of applause.

Toni popped the lightsaber closed and held it up. It felt perfect in her grip. “Press the button!” said Cheryl.

“Here goes nothing,” muttered Toni, and clicked the lever to extend the blade. There was a low rumbling sound and her eyes were blinded by green light. She almost dropped her saber, but thankfully she just thrust it away from her face in shock. 

Cheryl let out a woo! “That’s superb! I told you not to judge that crystal by its appearance.”

“And you were right.” Toni looked in awe at the lightsaber, her lightsaber. It had one of the brightest blades she’d ever seen, despite the dullness of the crystal that powered it. The crescent around the grip also glowed emerald, and Toni reached down with her other hand and pulled at the smaller emitter. It came away with a small k-chunk and Toni was suddenly holding something that looked like a black handle with the crescent blade on the end.

“A katar!” Cheryl exclaimed. When Toni gave her a confused glance, she explained, “It’s a knife that goes over your knuckles. Great for close-quarters defense.”

Toni waved it around a little, pretending to battle some invisible enemies. “That’s pretty neat.” She pressed it back to the indent in the handle of the lightsaber and it clicked in, leaving only the blade protecting the grip. She pressed the button and the blades sheathed themselves. 

“I’ll grab you a sheath from the armory.” Toni nodded and stood up, but the motion made her vision go dark for a second and she swooned. Cheryl caught her before she could fall and righted her, and Toni rubbed her eyes. “Don’t die on me, kid. You’ve been working for at least 36 hours. Perhaps you should go rest now.”

“Don’t call me that. I… I think you’re right,” muttered Toni, leaning on Cheryl’s shoulder. Now that the adrenaline that had populated her veins as she built was fizzling out, she suddenly felt deeply, deeply tired.

“Come on.” Cheryl picked up Toni’s new saber and led her through the door. “Can you get there on your own?”

“Yeah.” Toni let go of Cheryl, and immediately tripped and fell to her knees. “Never mind.” She closed her eyes, intending to fall asleep on the cold metal floor that felt so good against her sweaty cheek, but Cheryl hauled her back up with an exasperated huff.

“Are you going to help me at all here?” Cheryl asked, and when Toni shook her head woozily and let out a loopy giggle, she sighed and hefted Toni into her arms with surprising strength. Toni happily cuddled into Cheryl’s shoulder and slowly drifted off to sleep just before they reached the dorms, but not before she heard Cheryl whisper, “Sleep tight, Toni.”


	7. SEVEN: INSTINCT

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> toni completes her first trial, learns how beronica came to be, and joins a squadron.

WHEN TONI woke with a start back in her bed, it took her a moment to realize where she was. Her mouth tasted like cardboard and her head felt like it had been wrapped in tinfoil and microwaved. She rolled over and looked at her bedside table, where her brand-new lightsaber (plus a leather belt and sheath) lay, and her memory flooded back to her. She sat up, finger-combed her hair groggily, and wondered how long she had been asleep. The lack of Josie, Veronica, and Betty in the dorm and the harsh light of the suns slanting through the small windows told her that it was probably around noon, but she wasn’t sure exactly what day. She decided that, ultimately, it didn’t matter.

She got out of bed, intending to go get ready, but a flash of white from next to her lightsaber caught her eye. It was a folded piece of paper.

_ Hope you had a good rest. Put on your uniform and bring your lightsaber, then get something to eat and come to my command chair in the hangar. _

It wasn’t signed, and it didn’t need to be. Toni tucked it into her pocket, grabbed her weapon and sheath, and went to go shower and change.

Toni felt pretty cool decked out in her brand-new tan robe, brown pants and boots, and long, flowing cloak with her lightsaber by her side. She looked just like a real Padawan. When she strolled down the hall, people turned to stare and whisper. Was this how Cheryl felt every day? If so, she loved it. For the first time in her life, people didn’t just scoff or ignore her as she passed. She was  _ somebody _ . She even passed Josie on the way to the cafeteria and she gave her a high five. “Nice costume, Topaz!” She called over her shoulder. Toni flipped her the double bird and she cracked up.

She went through the lunch line, picking out a cold cut sandwich made of some unidentifiable meat and a bowl of weird purple soup, and scanned the room. Spotting Veronica, Betty, Sweet Pea, and Fangs sitting at the end of a table in the corner, she made a beeline towards them. Betty noticed her first and let out a long wolf whistle, and Veronica gave an approving round of applause. Toni grinned and bent in a mock bow, setting her tray down next to Sweet Pea and sliding into the seat. “Hello, ladies and gents. No autographs, please.”

“Lookin’ sharp!” Sweet Pea hooted, elbowing her in the ribs. “You’re a pilot, right? Name’s Sweet Pea, of the Serpent Squadron.”

Fangs took a bite of his own sandwich. “I’m Fangs. Are you excited for your first lesson?” he asked.

“Nice to meet you two. You know, I wasn’t planning on being a Jedi. But now that Master Cheryl wants to mentor me, I’m really excited about it.” Toni cautiously tested a spoonful of the strange soup. It wasn’t too bad; it tasted a little bit like beef and had sweet purple noodles, so she ate some more.

“Ooh. Topaz wants to bang Blossom.” Fangs wiggled his eyebrows, and Betty leaned across and flicked his ear. “Ow!”

Toni rolled her eyes. “Not like that, perv. I’m excited to learn how to do something other than fly, because it’s kind of my only skill, and to be a Jedi. I want to be the good in the galaxy, instead of just existing.”

Betty nodded appreciatively. “I can understand that. V has to listen to me ramble on about that kind of thing all the time. I make a mystery out of literally everything.”

“Aw, but it’s cute how much you want to change the world. It’s one of the things I love most about you.” Veronica rested her chin in her hands and made heart eyes across the table. “You’re my little Nancy Drew.” Betty blushed and grinned widely.

“What the fuck is a Nancy Drew?” Toni shook her head. “Oh, never mind. That’s disgusting. I love it.” She slurped some noodles. “So how did you guys meet?”

“Oh, I love this story. It’s hilarious.” Betty reached for Veronica’s hand, and they laced fingers in midair. “Babe, you wanna tell it?”

“No, you tell it.”

“No, you! It’s better when you tell it.”

“Eeeeewwww,” Sweet Pea and Fangs chorused.

“They tell this story all the TIME,” grumbled Fangs, and Betty flicked him again. “Ah! Stoppit!”

“But Topaz hasn’t heard it yet, so shut it, goons,” Veronica sighed. “Okay, here goes. So, I don’t know if you’ve heard this, but I was originally training as a pilot on the Vixens squadron, and I was  _ awful _ . Like sincerely, accidentally-shoot-your-own -comrades, run-into-giant-asteroids awful. Betty had just started working as a mechanic, and I had come in from a particularly bad run, so she was assigned to fixing my ship. When she saw the damage, she said, and this is a direct quote, “wow, you must be an absolutely crappy pilot.”

“Any idiot could tell that it was a joke!” cried Betty defensively. “So imagine my surprise when this shrimpy little pilot throws a wide hook right at my head.”

“Thank the gods she dodged, or I’d have never heard the end of it.” Veronica grumbled. “I had mad anger issues, no pun intended- I’ve mostly gotten over them by now, obviously, but it was  _ bad  _ back then. I can’t believe Betty stuck around as long as she did.”

“Because I love you, dummy.” Betty brought their entwined hands up to her mouth and kissed the back of Veronica’s hand. Toni  _ awww _ ed, and Sweet Pea pretended to gag.

“Anyways,” Veronica continued. “Archie, that redhead dude who was playing Sabacc in the common room last night, he basically has to pull me off of Betty. Who, by the way, didn’t hit me once, she just let me pummel her into the floor, this little angel. I was suspended for an indeterminate amount of time from my squadron, which was a blessing in disguise because it led me to try the strategy department, my real passion.” She made a rolling motion with her free hand. “Fast forward about a week, Betty catches my eye in the hall and starts to approach me. I’m assuming I’m about to get decked, I’ve accepted at this point that I’d overreacted and that I deserved it, but this dorky little fluff right here starts- wait for it-  _ apologizing _ .”

“I felt bad for calling her a crappy pilot,” Betty explained. “Even though I wasn’t wrong.” Toni snorted, shoving the last of her sandwich into her mouth.

“And right after she finished, she ducked like she thought I was going to try to hit her again,” Veronica said, staring into space thoughtfully. “I felt so bad, worse than I’d ever felt about hitting or attempting to hit someone. This sweet child had never hurt a living soul, it was obvious, and I’d tried to beat the hell out of her for making a joke. And that was when I realized I had a problem.”

“We became fast friends after that, and I was moved into her and Josie’s dorm. She told me that she thought she had some anger issues, so I led her to find help and started coaching her through her exercises. Eventually, what happened was that we were working on something that her therapist had recommended, that Ronnie hadn’t been able to get for a long time, and she finally understood it with my help and she got so excited that she just leaned over and kissed me.” Betty smiled wistfully. “It was such a sweet moment. And we danced around it for a while, but eventually she confessed that she liked me a few weeks later, asked me to be her girlfriend, and the rest is history.”

Toni clapped. “Bravo!” Betty mock-bowed, then leaned across the table and pecked Veronica on the lips. “So how long ago was that?”

“Hm.” Betty disconnected herself from Veronica reluctantly and thought for a moment. “What is it now, about… 2 years? 2 and a half?” Veronica nodded. “Yeah.”

Just then, the buzzer sounded, signalling the end of lunch. “That’s my cue. Time to face the Red Devil.” Toni slid the garbage on her tray into the trash cute next to the table and set the tray on top.

Sweet Pea saluted. “Rest in peace, soldier.”

\--

Toni found that the hangar was very close to the cafeteria. When she arrived, Cheryl was relaxing on her command chair as usual, looking for all the world like a queen lounging on her throne, and talking to a few guards. She walked over and waited patiently while Cheryl discussed something that Toni didn’t need or want to pay attention to. While she stood there, she happened to glance toward the planes and noticed the beanie-clad boy from the common room tinkering with the wing of a plane that displayed the same snake logo as the arm of his bomber jacket. He looked over, locking eyes with her, and gave her a broad grin.  _ Hello _ . She waved tentatively, and he motioned at her.  _ Come here! _ She looked around and pointed at herself. _ Me? _ He nodded, and Toni decided she had nothing to lose. She walked over to him.

“Nice X-Wing there.”

“Hey, thanks. Just giving her a quick tune-up.” The boy wiped his grease-stained hand on his pants and held it out for a shake. “I’m Jughead.”

Toni shook his hand. “I know. Veronica told me. I’m Toni, Toni Topaz.”

“So you’re the new kid, huh?” He turned back to his fighter’s wing and pulled a tool out of his box. “I saw you come in the dorm a few days ago.”

“Yup.”

“Betty tells me that you’re a pilot.” Jughead slapped the side of his ship. “I am too, as you could probably tell. Have you been assigned to a squadron yet?”

Toni shrugged. “Just got here. Master Cheryl’s been working me hard.”

“The fact that the General took to you so fast means something. You must show extreme promise. I see you as a powerful ally.” He peered at Toni like he was trying to figure something out. Or, rather, trying to figure  _ her _ out. “So, what do you say?”

“Wait, what?” asked Toni, confused.

“Well,” Jughead said in an  _ isn’t-it-obvious _ tone. “I’m the leader of the Serpent Squadron, and I’m asking you to join us.”

“Oh.” Toni blinked. “As long as I haven’t been assigned to one already, I would love to!”

“Great!” Jughead smiled, a genuine smile. “We look forward to having you aboard. Practices are every other afternoon, we meet in this hangar. There’s one today. Be there.” He turned and launched himself into the cockpit of his X-Wing, effectively ending the conversation, and Toni, noticing that Cheryl was alone again and practically glaring blaster bolts at her across the hangar, hurried back over.

“What did Lieutenant Colonel Jones want from you?” questioned Cheryl, no greeting or anything. Toni thought that before she fell asleep, Cheryl had actually used her real name, but it seemed like now they were back to sharp directness.

Toni dismissed the thought. “He asked me to join his Squadron,” she answered eagerly.

“And…?”

“I accepted.”

“Good for you. They’re a prestigious Squadron. I’ll put you into the system, and you’ll have to defer to the Lieutenant Colonel for practice times.” She raised an eyebrow. “Just see to it that the Serpents don’t interfere with your Padawan training. I wouldn’t want Jughead to steal you away from me.”

She was trying to be light, but here was something in the set of her jaw, a glint in her eyes. Was she… “Are you jealous?”

“I just don’t want you to fall behind.” Cheryl lowered her eyes.

“You’re totally jealous!” crowed Toni.

Cheryl sighed in defeat. “He called you ‘hot’ earlier.” She crossed her arms. “I didn’t like it. I can’t afford for you to become distracted by men.”

“Believe me, I’m not interested in men,” joked Toni. She thought she saw a flash of glee in Cheryl’s brown eyes, but it disappeared quickly. “So what’re we doing today, boss?”

Cheryl motioned for her to sit down. “First, I need to do your braid.”

Toni sat on the steps of the command chair, feeling a shiver roll down her spine at the brush of Cheryl’s fingers on her cheek. “What do I need a braid for?” she questioned.

“All Padawans have a ceremonial braid.” Cheryl undid Toni’s bun and dragged her fingers through her hair, separating out a small part. “When you rise to the rank of Jedi Knight under my tutelage, I will cut it off with my lightsaber as part of the knighting ceremony.”

“Okay.” Toni shrugged. “That makes sense.” She paused for a moment, thinking. “Can I ask you a question?”

“Mhm,” Cheryl hummed, focused on the task at hand.

“If once I graduate the braid comes off, why do you still have yours?”

Her long fingers stilled momentarily in Toni’s brown locks. “My mentor. Heather.” Cheryl’s voice caught on the name. It was obviously a hard memory. “I keep my Padawan braid in honor of her. She was killed by the Darth Vader’s padawan, Darth Venamis, 4 years ago, before she could finish my training. Or, at least… I thought she was killed.”

“You… you thought?” probed Toni.

“Remember how I told you I had a long night last night?” Toni nodded. “I went to sleep as normal, but was woken in the early hours. One of our spies, Ethel, gave her life to tell me that Heather was alive and on one of the Empire’s ships.”

Toni blinked. “Wow. And you’re going to go get her? Are you excited? It’s been a long time since you’ve seen her.”

“It’s going to be quite strange, I’m sure. But I’m just happy she’s alive.” Cheryl resumed her plait. “But until I get clearance for the mission from my council, I’m afraid I can’t do anything at all. They cannot hold me back forever, though.”

“Wow. I can tell you love her a lot,” Toni nodded, careful to keep her movements small so she didn’t mess Cheryl up. “And I don’t know you too well, but I already know you can be a force of freaking nature when you want to.”

“That’s true.” Toni heard a smile crease Cheryl’s voice from behind her. “And since you are now  _ officially _ my Padawan because I just finished your braid, my first act as your Master is to invite you along on the mission with me. When it comes around, of course.” 

“Huh. I’ll have to think about that.”

“Well, you’ll have to think about how it’s an order.” Cheryl tied off the braid and let it fall. It tickled Toni’s cheek. “Padawans are inseparable from their Masters for their entire apprenticeship. It’s just how the system is set up.”

Toni laughed. “So, that’s not creepy at all. Do you have, like, a camera in my room? Do you sneak in at night and watch me while I sleep?”

“Not quite that inseparable.” Cheryl patted her shoulder and stood up. “Keep living your dreams, though.”

“Hey, I-”

“Okay, first things first!” Cheryl clapped her hands together, silencing Toni. “We are going to the practice room. Since you have that very well-made lightsaber now, it’s time you learn how to use it.”

\--

“Look, but don’t look,” said Cheryl, wrapping a blindfold around Toni’s eyes when they arrived in the training room.

Toni threw her hands in the air. “Okay, what? That makes no sense.” Toni heard Cheryl huff behind her and spun toward the sound, the darkness of the cloth stifling her senses. Her mind went numb and fuzzy and she felt off-kilter, like something important had been taken from her; she never realized how heavily she relied on her sight until she couldn’t see. She felt anxiety build in her chest, and Cheryl seemed to sense it and placed a bracing hand on each of her shoulders.

“You’re okay,  _ cheríe _ . Don’t panic, just follow my voice.”

Toni focused her face forward. Even though she couldn’t see her, she could feel Cheryl’s presence, and it calmed her down enough to keep her breathing in check.

“What I want you to do now is to stop trusting in me.” Cheryl’s hands left Toni’s shoulders and she stumbled momentarily.

“What do I do?”

“Trust the Force.” The answer was short, final; Toni had a feeling she’d be hearing it a lot as Cheryl’s Padawan.

“Well, how do I know it’s there if I can’t see anything?”

“Trust works differently than you think.” As Cheryl’s voice rotated around her, so did her footsteps. Toni imagined her walking in circles, hands behind her back, in her base form- commanding General. “Seeing is knowing, and trust is believing, but seeing is not always believing.”

“Yes, Master,” Toni agreed. “You’re really on a roll today, aren’t you?”

“I am!” Toni could hear a smile in Cheryl’s voice, and it made her smile. She bounced up and down on the squishy mat, trying to concentrate.

Hm. What did she say? Oh, yeah, trust the Force. What a foreign concept. Toni had never trusted anyone, other than maybe Jonash- gods, even thinking his name made tears fill her eyes- and not to be, like, blasphemous or anything, but it was hard for Toni to trust something she couldn’t see. And, right now, she couldn’t see anything at all. Literally and figuratively.

But how else could she explain the robbers? Her brushes with death? Therefore, she  _ could _ see it. (Not at the moment, of course, but- oh, never mind.) Maybe she just wasn’t paying enough attention. So she tried concentrating. And concentrating some more. All she got was a whole lotta nothing.

“Okay, the training droid is going to fire some shots at you.” Toni heard the buzz of an engine and a draft gusted against her face. “They’ll sting a little bit, not nearly as much as a real blaster bolt, mind you. You need to either dodge or deflect them.”

“How?” asked Toni.

“Use what you have.”

That made Toni think for a second, before she realized…  _ um, duh _ . She drew her lightsaber and fumbled for the on button, jumping in shock when it ignited in a different direction than anticipated.

“Gods, kid, please don’t impale yourself,” Cheryl laughed. Toni flipped it right-side up and held it in a shaky ready stance.

“So when do I-” She was cut off by a sharp  _ bzrrt! _ and a flash of pain on her shoulder. “Yeow!”

“Oh. Yes. Watch out.”

“Very helpful,” grumbled Toni. Another buzzer sounded and she was hit with a quick spike to the leg, and another to the temple. Her knees buckled, and she caught herself on one hand, nearly dropping her lightsaber. Cheryl didn’t move help her up. She could feel her pacing around the edges of the ring, almost like she could see her in her mind’s eye.

_ Wait... _

What was that? A hazy glimmer of light where there was just darkness before? No, more like… feeling. Shapes she could sense instead of normal seeing. And, along with the shapes, she could suddenly feel the charge in the air and instinctively leaped to the side.  _ Bzzrt!  _ The charge zipped by her ear and disintegrated on the opposite wall. She hit the floor and rolled, just barely managing to avoid gutting herself with her lightsaber. She heard a sizzle as the hot blade met the practice mat. “Oh, blast!”

“Do not just dodge them, deflect them!” called Cheryl from somewhere on her left. Toni picked herself up off the ground and her weapon seemed to jerk on its own, even though it was Toni that moved it. It jumped as if she was hitting a smashball, and Toni sensed Cheryl duck. “Good start. Now center yourself. Control the recklessness.” 

Toni took a deep breath and tried to reign in her consciousness. She could sense the sphere at the edge of her vision and, ignoring her fear, she held her lightsaber a little higher. When she felt the energy, she blocked the bolt instead of swinging at it like a smashball and it ricocheted away.

There was a smile in Cheryl’s voice as she said “Excellent.” Toni practically swelled with sudden pride and, taking advantage of her distraction, the evil, evil sphere zoomed around and shot her in the ass.

“Ouch!” Toni spun angrily and, with a flourish, she pinpointed that stupid hunk of metal and sliced it neatly in half. It clunked to the floor, sputtering. She pulled the blindfold over her head and tossed it to the mat, beaming at Cheryl. “How’d I do?” She just stared back in shock. 

“Well, good job… nipping the problem in the bud, so to speak. You certainly showed you can Force-detect.” Cheryl grimaced as she looked at the sparking hunks of metal on the training room floor. “You still have to practice it to become proficient, though, and it may be somewhat difficult to do that without a droid.”

“Oops,” Toni mumbled. She sheathed her lightsaber guiltily. After a moment where they both stared at the broken training droid, Toni sat down cross-legged to the side of the mat, taking a water bottle from the rack on the wall and chugging a few gulps. “So, what are the requirements for being a Jedi, anyways?” she questioned, wiping sweat from her forehead.

“Ah. I have been meaning to tell you this.” Cheryl leaned against the stack of mats.

“That doesn’t sound too good.”

“On the contrary! This is something all Jedis have to go through. Well, except me, but I passed on the technicality that I needed the Knight to Master training or else my mind would collapse on itself and implode from all the traumatic memories.” The delivery of this was surprisingly cheerful, almost falsely so.

Toni blinked in shock. “Damn. Okay, so what are the things I have to do in order to pass?”

Cheryl thought for a moment. “There are fourteen Trials in all. Thirteen now, since you just completed one.”

“Oh, sick! Did I do a Trial just by asking about them? Do I get a medal or something?” Toni looked around expectantly, like the little green man from the video conference might pop out from behind the training dummy and shower her in candy. Well, a girl could dream.

“No, no, nothing like that,” Cheryl laughed. “The Trial you completed was the Trial of instinct, which all you have to do to pass is be able to Force-detect, or  _ seeing and not seeing _ , as the philosophers of my trade call it.” Toni nodded along. “The thirteen other Trials each are of the same kind. There is the Trial of courage, where you must face down an enemy without fear; the Trial of the flesh, where you must overcome immense physical pain; the Trial of the spirit, where you must face down your insecurities and defeat them; the Trial of insight, where you must see through an illusion; the Trial of teamwork, where you must work with others to find a solution to a problem; the Trial of isolation, where you must learn to be alone with your thoughts- that will be your next Trial-”

“Wait, you’re gonna leave me alone?” asked Toni anxiously. “‘Cause I don’t do very well when it’s just my thoughts and I.”

“You’ll see,” said Cheryl mysteriously. “There is also the Trial of fear, where you must overcome one of your greatest; the Trial of anger, where you must control yours and use it to your advantage; the Trial of betrayal, where you must come back from one stronger than ever; the Trial of focus, where you must stay within yourself in the most distracting of circumstances; the Trial of forgiveness, where you learn to move on from past grievances,” Cheryl listed. “The Trial of protection, where you must help someone even if it might hurt you; and finally, the Trial of skill, the last Trial, which tests speed, agility, strength, endurance, and other physical skills. After you complete that Trial, you will be awarded Knighthood.”

Toni sat for a moment in silence, mulling over the exposition dump, before holding up her lightsaber with a slightly manic grin. “Well, better get going on those, shall we?”

“I admire your drive; however, except for a few choice Trials such as insight and spirit, you have to come across the Trials naturally in your studies and missions.” Cheryl paced between a stack of mats and a rack of weights, staring into the distance. “You’ll start going on missions with me soon enough.”

“Am I finished with this for now?” Toni asked cautiously. “‘Cause Jughead said the squadron was having practice this afternoon-”

Cheryl seemed to snap back to reality. “Ah. Yes. Go. If it transpires well and you connect with your new squadron, I can watch some of your drills and log it as your Trial of teamwork.”

“Cool. Thanks, Master Cheryl.” Cheryl responded by offering a hand. Toni took it, shaking away the thrill that ran through her at the contact, and allowed the taller girl to help her up.

“But I want you to come in here and train twice as hard tomorrow, alright? We’ll be working on some close combat. Maybe use that katar of yours.”

“Sounds awesome.”

“Doesn’t it just?” Cheryl smiled, then waved her hand in the hair. “Go. I can’t have you be late for your first meeting with your squadron.”

“Yes. Of course.” Toni bounced back and forth for a moment before bowing awkwardly, causing Cheryl to giggle. “Hey, what?”

“Bowing. It seems weirdly… formal,” said Cheryl.

“What? Is this- is this not formal?” joked Toni, pointing back and forth between the two of them.

Cheryl opened her mouth to respond, grinning, but something shut down behind her eyes and her smile wilted. She seemed to settle on a flat “yes”. Every joke Toni was ready to crack died on her tongue, and for once in her life, she stayed silent. Cheryl’s mouth twisted, lowering her eyes, and Toni wisely left. She felt bad for walking out on her like that that, but it was obvious she needed some alone time. For what reason, Toni wasn’t sure.


	8. EIGHT: TEAMWORK

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> toni flies her first drill and has an important conversation with veronica.

SWEET PEA ran to Toni and punched her gently in the shoulder. “Welcome to the team!” The team in question seemed to only include three people: Jughead, Sweet Pea, and Fangs. They each donned a brown jacket, not unlike Toni’s save for one detail- the serpent emblem on the sleeve. They each wore a pilot’s uniform as well. Jughead leaned casually against the belly of his ship. Behind it were three magnificent X-Wings, and Toni danced in place with the crazy idea that one would soon belong to her.

Fangs motioned them over and the three Serpents went to stand in front of Jughead. “Welcome to practice!” announced Jughead. Toni laughed inwardly at this skinny, pale boy not much older than her acting like he was a king. She hoped this squadron could keep up with her. “Soldiers, you know Toni, I’m sure?” Fangs and Sweet Pea nodded in unison. “Okay, now for the rules…”

“Can we just fly already?” Fangs butted in. “I’m sure Topaz wants to get going.” He shot her a meaningful glance.

Sweet Pea leaned in and mock-whispered, “control freak.” Toni stifled a giggle, and Fang shoved into Sweet Pea with his shoulder.

“Alright, boys, settle down.” Jughead adjusted his beanie self-importantly, and Toni resisted the urge to mimic him. “Get to your planes!” 

Sweets and Fangs each ran to their separate ships, leaving Toni with the one in the middle, directly behind Jughead’s. Toni resisted the urge to squeal. Middle point was a huge honor in a Rebel squadron; it was the second-best position and the best one a grunt soldier could score, since point was reserved for the leader of the squadron. The fact that Jughead was giving her the position on her first day made her like him a little more.

Toni stroked the side of her plane lovingly, the cold hypersteel warming slightly under of her touch, and hoisted herself up the ladder. A squat little astromech unit occupied the space behind the cockpit, colored silver with green accents. “Hello,” Toni greeted it. “What’s your name?”

The droid let out a long squeal. Thankfully, Toni could speak the language of the droids from her time on Corellia, and it said to her, “hello, Antoinette Topaz! I’m R7-L1! I am your pilot droid and personal companion, assigned by General Cheryl Blossom.”

“Nice to meet you, R7-L1.” She thought for a minute. “Nah, that’s too long. L1… I’m gonna call you Ellen.”

“As you wish!” Ellen beeped. It seemed to only speak in exclamation marks. “I’m sure we’ll be great partners!”

“I bet. Tell Cheryl I said ‘sup’,” Toni said, but it was lost in the roar of the engines as the other three planes fired up. She fumbled below her feet for a helmet and found one, charred and beat up, emblazoned with the symbol of the Serpents. Putting it on, she spoke into the microphone. “Testing, testing… calling Serpent Leader.”

“Hearing you loud and clear, Serpent 3,” Jughead said tinnily in her ear.

Toni switched her channels. “Ellen? You there? Fire up the engines, please.” 

“Affirmative, Miss Antoinette!” The astromech droid bleeped.

She strapped herself in as the engines began to roar. “Oh, and Ellen?” A protective bubble lowered over her head and encased the cockpit (in case of space travel or misfires).

“Yes, Miss? _ ”  _ Jughead turned towards the entrance, and Toni scrambled to follow so she wasn’t clipped by Sweet Pea’s wing. She joined the two channels and her ears were suddenly filled with Jughead barking loud commands.

“Since we’re gonna be friends, just call me Toni.” She grinned wickedly, feeling the familiar curve of the joysticks in her hands, and pressed forward on the throttle. 

“Of course, Miss Toni _ -” _ the small droid was cut off by the engines letting out a loud whine as the squadron all zoomed forward as one. 

Ellen shrieked loudly and Toni giggled. “Gotcha!” 

They were in the air! The planes’ engines left deep divots in the dirt as they gained altitude. “Serpent Leader to Serpent 3. Come in, Serpent 3.”

Toni grinned. “Receiving you loud and clear, Serpent Leader. Let’s get this bread.” Sweet Pea hooted in agreement, and she did a barrel roll in celebration without breaking ranks. She felt much more comfortable in the sky than she did tethered to the annoyingly solid ground. What fun was life without a little unexpectedness?

“Show-off,” mumbled Fangs. Toni stuck out her tongue at him through the clear glass of the pod.

“Alright, enough of that! Tight form, head for the hills, I’ve set up some mock enemy droids,” Jughead commanded.

“Captain, my Captain,” said Fangs.

“One more crack like that and I’m reporting you to the General, Fogarty.”

Fangs snickered. “Too bad we have our golden ticket right here.” He cocked a thumb at Toni.

Toni switched her channels and muttered, “Tyrant, my tyrant.” The two boys howled with laughter.

“What was that, Serpent 3?”

Toni switched her channels back. “Nothing, nothing at all, Serpent Leader.”

Jughead was silent for a second, obviously not buying it, but let it go. Or, more like he had to, because the enemy drones the squadron leader had planted suddenly showed up on Toni’s radar. By the excited yells she heard on the comms, it seemed like Fangs and Sweets had seen them too.

When she and her friends on Corellia would have landspeeder squadron races, before they all went to school or the pilot training academy or into the smuggling trade and left Toni behind, they would get into this zone where they didn’t have to speak to know what each other were thinking. Toni had expected to never feel that way again- but she suddenly did, and Jughead didn’t even have to say anything. The voice channel was silent as their engines cut off as one and they coasted close to the ground, careful to not alert the drones to their presence. 

It seemed to work, because the drones didn’t stray from their circular course on Toni’s readout. Sweet Pea and Fangs peeled off and circled around the outcropping of trees that the drones were hiding inside of. 

“Clamp maneuver,” Jughead commanded. “They’re expecting us to come from the front. Peabody, Fogarty, close in on the sides. I’ll come from the back. Topaz, can you draw their fire?”

“On it, Jones!” Wow, they were using last names now! Toni felt like a real squadron. She quickly switched her channels, suddenly thinking of a brilliant idea. “Hey, Ellen, fire up the proton torpedoes.”

“Affirmative, Miss Toni. But why?” Ellen asked over the sudden hum of cannons. “Lieutenant Forsythe told you to simply draw their fire.”

“Ha ha, Forsythe is a stupid name,” Toni chuckled. “But that’s for later. Instead of drawing their fire, I’m gonna fire… on their fire. Wow, that sounded way more badass in my head.”

In front of her, Jughead circled around to the back of the trees, and Toni yanked her joysticks to the side, spinning a tight cyclone until she entered the outcropping of  trees. In front of her were two drones, and they immediately swiveled to fire on her. She dodged nimbly, but it was harder than she expected with the trees and she almost ran into one.  _ Well _ , she thought as she skirted another tree,  _ at least these are just dummy bullets _ . But when one hit her tail and nearly knocked her flat, she realized that  _ she _ was the dummy here. She shot off a proton torpedo and it hit a trunk, sending up a loud  _ poof _ and probably alerting everything within several miles to her position. Oops. She really shouldn’t have disobeyed those orders.

There was no way she could keep this up in the trees. Toni hit a quick 180, and after checking they were following, she switched channels and yelled, “I’ve got them! They’re following me out of the forest!”

There was a commotion of noise over the comm line. “Now we can’t do the clamp,” moaned Sweets. “You ruined our maneuver!”

“Topaz, you were supposed to draw their fire!” said Jughead angrily. “What did you do?”

Toni burst through the tree line, sending up a cloud of birds. After a quick glance back, she realized she was now being tailed by seven drones. Sweets and Fangs shot overhead. “It’s not my fault that your blasted droids don’t know how to act!”

“That’s not- I’ll deal with you later,” Jughead spat. “Peabody and Fogarty, pick off Topaz’s tail. I’ll cut their path.” A charge whizzed by Toni’s window and she hit a hard left, leading the ships over the treetops. Behind her, Sweet Pea sniped a drone and it exploded with a bang, knocking three others off course. Toni yanked her controls upwards and half-backflipped, and gravity lifted her slightly out of her seat. She was flying upside down! She didn’t panic though; she’d practiced this maneuver before. Her orientation confused the drones long enough for her to take two down and ram the other. It sure gave her a headache, though.

“Where did that one come from, Topaz?!” hooted Fangs over the comm. “Epic!” 

Toni flipped upright and grinned. “I told you I had a few tricks up my sleeve.”

“Don’t forget about the enemy!” called Jughead.

Oh, right. Those guys. Toni looped the outcropping again and dodged a few shots. As she flew over the base to let Fangs and Sweet Pea have another pass, when she was momentarily distracted by a glimpse of red hair emerging from the base. Cheryl! She stood with her arms crossed in front of the hangar. She must have been watching to see their teamwork.

“Topaz, strafe right!” cried Fangs. All of the following happened in approximately 6.1 seconds: Toni gunned her engines and yanked her controls to the right, tailspinning so quickly that the drones didn’t even realize she was now tailing  _ them _ . She didn’t know if Cheryl could see her, but she shot her a wink just in case. Fangs whipped past and gunned down a drone so close she could practically feel the fallout, and Sweet Pea wounded another. Shrapnel bounced off the glass of her window as she flew through the fiery explosion, ramming the one that Pea had injured, and the last droid fell by way of a timely proton torpedo from Toni herself.

“Exercise complete!” said Jughead as the rest of the team whooped and laughed. “Join me back at the hangar.”

Toni thought about how Jughead would make her answer for her mistake and cringed slightly. “Don’t worry, Miss,” beeped Ellen, as if she read her mind. “The Lieutenant won’t go so hard on you.”

“Thanks, Ellen,” Toni responded, but she wasn’t so sure. The ships flew right over Cheryl’s head, who was still standing there watching them and landed in the hangar. Toni bade Ellen goodbye and hopped out. She went to go greet Cheryl but was immediately mobbed by Sweet Pea and Fangs clapping her on the back and saying things like “Fancy flying, kid!” and “... real good moves there, Tiny, real good moves,” but they both went quiet when the lieutenant approached.

“Let’s all go grab a drink,” Jughead told her, his expression unreadable.

Toni didn’t get to greet Cheryl, but when she turned to look at her, Toni could have sworn she saw the stone-faced General smile slightly at her.

\--

There turned out to be a small dive pub only a few kliks from the Rebel base that the Squadrons frequented after training missions, so the Serpents piled into a loaner landspeeder and made the journey. Toni found herself sitting at a small booth, crammed in next to Fangs, with Sweets and Jughead on the other side, holding a pint of Corellian mead. They didn’t ask how old she was at the counter, and the alcohol was even stronger than it was at home.

Toni loved her new job.

“So, Topaz.” Jughead took a sip of his drink (a virgin Dantooinian Blue Lagoon, all in all a beverage for privileged sissies, but she wasn’t gonna say that out loud) “You had a little bit of a rocky start back there, but you really proved yourself in the end. That was some great flying.” He raised his glass. “Welcome to the Serpents.”

“To Topaz!” Sweet Pea cheered, raising his glass as well. Fangs and Jughead chimed in. 

Toni responded with, “To me!” which cracked them all up.

“Topaz, are you sure you can hold that mead? It’s awfully strong,” said Fangs, gesturing to her drink. 

Toni scoffed. “During a drinking contest on Corellia, I drank eight pilots under the table before passing out. I woke up in a garbage can holding my trophy.” Jughead nodded appreciatively.

“Oh, bet?” said Sweet Pea, sitting forward in his chair. “I think I can beat you.”

Toni laughed out loud. “Okay, Sweet Pea.” She patted him on the arm. “I’ll humor you. Waiter!” She called. “A tray of shots of Mustafarian liqueur.”

Fangs’s eyes nearly popped out of his head. “Mustafarian liqueur?” He asked, shocked. “I’ve heard rumors that stuff’s made with real lava!”

Toni leaned back in her seat. “Child’s. Play,” she enunciated. Jughead let out a chuckle at the terrified expressions on Fangs’s and Sweets’s faces.

The waiter brought over the shots and, without hesitation, she downed one, then two. It burned her throat like fire going down, but she held a straight face. Sweet Pea picked up one in his shaky hand, clearly regretting all his life decisions that brought him up to this point, and drank it. “Bleaugh!” he choked, and Fangs howled with laughter. Toni tossed back two more, not breaking eye contact with the sputtering Sweet Pea.

Sweet Pea held up his hands in surrender. “Well,” he slurred, clearly already feeling the effects of the liqueur. “I woul’ like to wivdraw frommuh competition. The new kid beat me! I proposeuh nickname!” he announced, raising his second shot glass. “Toni Topaz, I dubee… Space Slug, tiny bu’ mighty!” He downed the shot and gagged. “Ew, I forgot how baddd di’is.”

“Space Slug? Really?” Jughead gestured at Toni. “That’s the best you can come up with?”

Toni shrugged. “Eh. I kinda like it.” She raised her shot. “To Space Slug!”

“Slug!” They cheered.

Everyone grabbed a shot, downed it, and Toni’s new family yelled and laughed together. “Now let’s. Get. Wasted!” she cried. 

“Not me, I’m driving!” said Jughead.

Fangs rolled his eyes. “Figures.”

After several hours of partying and drinking and sharing stories, Jughead loaded his three pilots into the landspeeder and carted them home. Toni was the least drunk of the three, so while Sweet Pea and Fangs sleepily walked back to their dorm, Toni headed to the training room to sober up.

She slid on some fingerless gloves and booted up the sparring droid. She was drunk enough to be dizzy and slightly tipsy, but not drunk enough to be tripping over her feet and throwing up everywhere. She had just sat down to stretch her legs out when Veronica trotted in. She froze when she noticed Toni on the floor.

“Well? You can come in,” Toni said. “I won’t bite.”

“Uh… thanks, I guess.” Veronica sat down next to her and began to stretch. “Wait- are you drunk?”

“What gave it away, the fact I’m in the sparring room at-” She checked her watch. “-1 AM? Oh, blast, is it that late? I really should go to bed.”

“No, you literally reek of alcohol. You had your first practice today, didn’t you? I thought being out with Sweet Pea and Fangs would get you a  _ whole _ lot drunker.”

“High as hell tolerance. Come to think of it-” Toni pointed accusingly at Veronica. “-why are you here?” She gasped. “Are you drunk too? Drunk buddies!”

Veronica waved her away. “No. No, I just needed to beat something up to clear my head.” She cracked her back and stood, grabbing her own pair of gloves. “It’s part of my anger management.”

“I get it. I always beat stuff up to clear my head, too.”

Veronica offered her a smile. “Glad to see I’m not that weird. Wanna team the bot?”

“Cool.” Toni stood up and pressed the on button of the sparring droid. The two of them dropped into their ready crouches, back to back. “So, why did you need to come fight your emotions away?” Toni asked over her shoulder.

The droid came towards the two of them and Toni launched a roundhouse kick that knocked it back a few paces. “Nice one,” Veronica commented, before battering it with a couple of neat hooks. “It’s about Betty.” She feigned a kick to the droid’s face before hitting it in the stomach with her other leg.

“Oh no, are you guys okay? Are you having trouble?” Toni tried to go low and sweep the legs, but the droid predicted her movement and hopped over.

Veronica socked the droid point-blank in the face and as it swayed, punch-drunk, Toni charged it and shoved it down. Its face flashed  _ defeat _ , then it stood up and walked back over to its charger port. “Nice one,” Veronica said, holding up her hand for a high five. Toni obliged. “And, to answer your question, we aren’t having trouble. We’re having the opposite of trouble, she’s so amazing.” Veronica scuffed her toe against the mat. Toni had never seen the normally confident brunette look so bashful. “It’s just that- I want to ask her to marry me.”

Toni gasped loudly, squealing and flapping her hands up and down at the news. “Veronica! Oh my Gods, that’s amazing!” She leaped forward and yanked Veronica into a bear hug. “I’m so happy for you guys! You’re so cute and cuddly and gah!”

“You’re drunk, kid,” laughed Veronica.

Toni stepped back and shrugged. “Maybe so, but the point still stands.”

“Thanks. I’m gonna do it next week.” Veronica frowned. “But what if she says no?”

“Oh, believe me, Ronnie, I’ve seen the way she looks at you. She won’t say no. In fact, I’d bet you she won’t say ‘yes!’ with anything lower than 100% enthusiasm.”

“Really? Ya think?” Veronica smiled to herself.

Toni clapped her on the back. “Dude, I  _ know _ .”

“Heh. Thanks,” said Veronica, wrapping an arm around Toni’s shoulder. “Now, let’s go get you some water and put you to bed. It’s late, and you definitely need to dry out a little bit.”

“Affirmative. I can’t feel my legs.”

**Author's Note:**

> obviously, my writing's not perfect (although it's close), so i'd appreciate if you, dear reader, would drop a comment telling me what i should do better! you can even stop by if you want to say something nice, or if you want to argue with someone, as long as you keep it civil on my lawn. thanks for reading!
> 
> twitter; @killerrqueer  
> tumblr; @communistdanni


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